Anime theme singer on way to Kawaii Kon

It was a few hours after I turned in last week's column about the "Crayon Shinchan" licensing deal that I received an e-mail from Chris Macedonio, Kawaii Kon assistant director of events and guest relations, with news of yet another Japanese guest attending the local anime convention in April.

This time, the guest is Yoko Ishida, who has contributed theme songs for several "Sailor Moon" series, "Little Snow Fairy Sugar" and the "Ah! My Goddess" TV series. Two of her CDs, "Sweets" and "all of me," have been released domestically by Geneon Entertainment.

Ishida is no stranger to the United States, having attended several mainland conventions in the past and recently embarking on an 11-city Para Para dancing tour hosted by Musicland's Suncoast stores. This is, however, her first appearance in Hawaii.

According to convention director Stan Dahlin, Ishida will sign autographs on all three days of the convention, participate in two panels and perform in concert. A Para Para dance session is also possible.

While the convention staff will need to tweak the layout of the main auditorium to maximize seating while accommodating a stage area and other equipment, Dahlin said measures are in the works to assure that as many people as possible will be able to enjoy Ishida's performance.

For more information on the convention, visit www.kawaiikon.org ...

Meeting update

» The anime and manga artist group MangaBento will be holding meetings every Sunday in March, with the first of those meetings taking place this Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. in Room 200 of the Academy Art Center, 1111 Victoria St. Don't forget about the group's art contest for amateur artists 18 and younger; look for my Feb. 13 column on starbulletin.com or visit the group's Web site, mangabento.doomdrgn.com, for more details ...

Cel Shaded, a look at the world of Japanese anime and manga, appears every Monday. Reach Jason S. Yadao at jyadao@starbulletin.com